Friday, March 6, 2009

I don't know why I did it

It seems like everyone has a story about that moment in life when they did something completely out of the norm, and had no explanation for why they did it other than divine intervention. I love stories like that, so I thought I'd share mine and hope some of you will post a comment and share yours too!

My son Isaac is deathly allergic to peanuts. We have to be very careful about the products we bring in the house because so much is manufactured on equipment that processes peanuts. The biggest problem is that not all packaging has proper warnings, and some stuff seems to be worse than other stuff. For snack crackers we often buy a big variety pack from Costco that is made in a peanut-free facility. Last winter though someone had brought over a box of Ritz crackers. I had looked over the box of Ritz and saw absolutely no warnings about peanuts, but was pregnant with Nahshon at the time and my mushy brain didn't even think about the fact that Ritz makes peanut butter sandwich crackers. Normally I will just leave a pack of crackers on the counter and let the kids help themselves. One afternoon the kids were wanting some of the Ritz crackers, and being just a couple weeks away from my due date I was very tired and wanted to lay down and rest my feet. For some reason I decided to take the crackers with me while I laid down to watch the news, so the kids had to come in and ask me for some when they wanted to eat them. Imagine my shock and horror when I tore the package all the way open and found peanut butter all down the side of the crackers! It started about half way down, so if I had not torn open the entire sleeve, I would not have noticed it until the kids had eaten down to that point. There wasn't just a little either, it was a huge slathering from halfway all the way down to the bottom. I cannot even imagine what would have happened if I had just left them on the counter like usual to let the kids help themselves. Needless to say, Ritz crackers have never been allowed in our house since!

My second story happened when I was 17. I was on my way to work, and was stopped at a light. I've always been a careful driver; never the type to punch the gas the moment the light turned green. For some reason on this particular day when the light turned green I suddenly remembered my dad telling me to always wait a few seconds and look both ways before entering an intersection to make sure no other cars were coming through at the last minute. Even though my light had been green long enough that any normal person behind me would have honked, something held me back and made me look before entering the intersection. At that moment a car charged through a red light, going easily 50 mph in a 35 mph zone. Had I entered the intersection in a normal frame of time, my car would have been totaled.

The only explanation I have for both of these events is divine intervention from God.

2 comments:

Wow, those are "God" stories! Very powerful. I have one that happened to me recently...When I thought I was in labor with James I called my doula, I had been having mild cramping that was about 10min. apart. My doula said the hospital would most likely send me home because my contractions were that close together yet. I agreed with her because my contractions weren't painful yet and I figured I had a long night ahead of me full of the really painful contrations. About 5min after I hung up the phone with her she called me back and said she layed in bed and thought about it and she wanted me to call the hosiptal and tell them my situation and see if they wanted me to come in. I did and the hospital said to come on in. Long story short, I ended up having James within 45 minutes of getting to the hospital. If I would have waited at home for the contractions to get worse I most likely would have given birth at home or in the car, neither one being my top choice. ;-) I totally believe it was God intervening when my doula called me back to say I needed to check in with the hospital. :)

Those are amazing, Aubrey! Thank you so much for sharing and reminding us what a powerful God we have who truly watches out for us. I am sure there are many times that aren't as obvious to us, but for these times which are obvious reminders, I am thankful.

I had one on the way to gymnastics in the fall. We had been rain-free for a few days and yet this afternoon was a dreary, wet day. I was heading north up Hwy 99, listening to music and Bekah's chatter in the backseat when I felt like I was jerked alert and my attention was drawn to the fact that a green light was approaching, the roads would be slick, and I was following a car that may stop suddenly should the light turn yellow. Sure enough, no sooner had I begun to increase my following distance the light changed and the car in front of me slammed on its brakes. Had I not received a 'wake up call from God' I am certain I would have slammed right into the back of this car.